Years Gone By
by Treta Aysel
Summary: Ten years had gone by since they had last seen and spoken to each other.


**Years Gone By: **

It had been ten years since he had last seen him. _Ten years. _There wasn't a day that went by that Oliver Wood didn't regret not telling him, missing him, and wanting to see him again. The Quidditch player never did understand why he didn't tell him right then. After the war when everyone was confessing things they wanted their loved ones to know. He should have, he knew he should have but he never did. That was his only regret from ten years ago.

The years wore on, nagged at him a bit more each passing day. For years he focused on his Quidditch skills, moving up off of reserve rather quickly and making the team in a last ditch effort in not to confess the feelings he was feeling for his best friend and former roommate while at school.

_Shouldn't it be former best friend? _The voice in his head reminded him. That was right, former best friend, they hadn't spoken in years. Some best friend he was, some Gryffindor he was not even telling his best friend that he liked him in much more than a friendly way. Even if it was a fear of his best friend leaving him for his feelings, he knew he should have been brave and told him.

_Ever since our 5__th__ year, _he added in his mind as a little afterthought.

He stood in front of a nice house, on a quiet street it seemed. The house was a nice soft yellow and after all these years Oliver still couldn't see Percy as the type of person to buy a house like this or even live in a house like this. He thought he'd be the type to live in a small apartment for basically the rest of his life.

_He could have changed though, _the voice reminded him. _People change. _He knew that and he should have remembered that. He had changed himself over the past ten years and he didn't know why that didn't mean Percy didn't change either.

Looking down, he studied the package he held clasped in his hands before looking up at the door. Well, it was now or never. He sighed and made his way up to the front door. Taking in a breath he raised a shaking hand to knock on the door, waiting for an answer.

It didn't take long for an answer to come, the door slowly opened and Oliver found himself looking down at a small girl with freckles, curly red hair wearing glasses that framed her face. She couldn't have been more than seven or eight at the oldest.

Oliver stared at her for a long moment, trying to swallow a lump in his throat that was building up. This girl, this small girl looked a lot like Percy and it was hard to deny the fact that she was his child. "Hi?" She asked, regaining his attention.

"Yes, hi, is your father home?" He knelt down a bit, trying to get at eye level with her.

She nodded, but didn't speak.

"Can I see him?"

"He's busy."

Oliver frowned a bit and sighed. That's not what he wanted to hear, but oh well. He worked up a half smile and held out a package. "If it's not too much trouble could you give this to your father for me?"

She reached out and took the package from him and watched him walk away. Shrugging, she closed the door and entered the house. "Dad!" She called, walking over to a door and knocking once. She knew her dad was busy and knew better than to disturb him.

The door opened and Percy sighed, looking up from his work to look at her. "What is it, Molly?"

"Someone was just here to see you." She held out the package to him, smiling a bit. "They left you this."

Curiously Percy reached out and took the package from his daughter. "Thank you Molly."

The redhead nodded and spun around to leave her dad alone, letting him inspect the package on his own. Once she was gone Percy tore into it, finding nothing but an old school book from ages ago, a note attached to the cover binding that read:

'_Percy,_

_I never gave this back to you all those years ago. Thanks for letting me borrow it again. _

_Thanks,_

_Oliver' _

A small line appeared on his face, even though it had been years since he'd last seen Oliver he always had a way of showing up somehow. He never understood why the two of them didn't keep in touch anymore. They stopped talking after the war had ended but he still went to Oliver's Quidditch games to watch him still, but however he came to a point where he had to stop when his family began.

Sighing Percy traced along the golden words of the book before opening a drawer in his desk, placing the book inside. Maybe one day the two of them would come face to face again, maybe words from the years gone by between them will be said.


End file.
